


Tres Haunted Boys and the case of Raven Queen Castle

by OrianaGray



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, Found Family, Ghostbusters AU, Horror, Humor, I don't know how else to tag this, M/M, Mystery, ghosthunter au, it's kind of all over the place
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-27
Updated: 2017-11-01
Packaged: 2019-01-25 04:16:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12522776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OrianaGray/pseuds/OrianaGray
Summary: The Tres Haunted Boys are the most successful Ghostbusters in the entirety of the Bureau of Balance. There hadn't been a case of which they couldn't get rid of the problem. So when a call comes in that has them make a trip all the way to the Whelsh countryside, they find themselves in a situation that only ever seems to get worse, accompanied by their client Kravitz, who has been getting the brunt end of the ghosts torment-- it becomes a race against time to save the man's life from eternal suffering at the hands of the ghouls.





	1. Raven Queen Castle

**Author's Note:**

> Oh boy, I am really excited to finally publish this-- in time for Halloween too! 
> 
> Just wanna let y'all know though that though I already have a lot of this written, I am still in school so updates will be a little wonky sometimes, I will post about it on my twitter (@oriana_gray) or in a more organized fashion on tumblr where I will tag it as "Tres Haunted Boys", tag anything with that and I will defo see it!
> 
> I'm hella excited for this and I hope you all enjoy!

 

The countryside of Astral Plane Acres stretches for an uncertain number of miles. It was considered to be one of the most beautiful curves of the countryside in Wales. Untouched, yet well-kept; the thick gray clouds that typically hung amongst the sky provided gentle mists and a light layer of fog. Nothing unsettling- in fact, most envy the thought of a peaceful retirement and fantasize about their own tired eyes awaking to the sight of the endless green stretch that carved through the gray thickness.

 

A long and slightly windy road carves across one of the steep hillsides, the bright and vivid colors of the grass surrounding it having helped the road become deemed “the green mile-” unironically, of course. Heavy black railings, which ravens commonly perch upon, provide a safety rail for travelers, as they drive deeper and deeper into the fog with each slight incline. When curious eyes peer upward, watching as a massive silhouette form atop the hill, daunting in its size, thick white stone providing its structure. A relic of history in both religion, mystery, and the most wealthy individuals that ever roamed the earth, it stood high and proud with the title from its original creator, “Raven Queen Castle.” It is beautiful, it is horrifying, and according to rumors and a dark history, haunted beyond all belief.

 

The history precedes it, catching eyes from all around the globe- ghost hunters and common tourists are willing to throw anything down to simply catch a glimpse of the castle, and once they enter, often would tell of the feeling that a thousand eyes of a thousand souls had stared them down. It is really- if Kravitz were to evaluate- dramatic overkill. 

 

“Historically, this castle dates back to the early 14th century, started as a side project by one of the Raven Queen's most progressive and loyal followers, Hendrix Nathan Kravitz, and would be a project which is past down through his bloodline for-” Kravitz halts as a young boy in the tour group, of a rather decent size- he may add proudly- raises his hand, bright green eyes looking nearly ominous in the limited lighting that peaked through the windows. “A question?”

 

“When do we get to see the ghosts?” He whines, his mother blushes and taps his shoulder, shaking her head when he looks back at her. “What? I'm  _ bored. _ ”

 

“Simon!” His mother squarks, “I'm so sorry sir, he-”

 

Kravitz gives an understanding smile, and waves her off nonchalantly, before turning his attention back to the boy. “Simon was it?” The boy nods in affirmation.

 

“I'll tell you a secret.” He leans forward, just so that he matched the boy's height, “Many many years ago, twins inherited this house after their father and mother had passed, Lydia and Edward Kravitz. They lead troublemakers, greedy, and desperate people into this house, to the eighth quadrant, and you know what they did with those people?”

 

The boy shook his head, practically buzzing with giddiness. 

 

“They promised them wealth, and then killed every single one of them. It's said the remains of those people are scattered about these very grounds, and their greed will forever haunt these halls. So, watch out.” He pats the kid on the shoulder before standing, withholding a snicker.

 

“As young Simon has introduced us to the darker history of the Castle, there are ten quadrants, one for each heir- each an addition of the person or people. In this, the ninth quadrant, you'll find a Winchester house deal. If you are unfamiliar with that: hallways and doors that lead to nowhere, random drops and so on- said to be constructed under the whim of the spirits.” He turns and waves to the crowd, beckoning them to follow. “So watch your step as we make our way to the gift shop on the other side.”

 

~<\--->~

 

Kravitz waits patiently as the final tourists leave the shop. They were kind and thanked him for the experience, he happily thanked them for their partaking in it- and wished them the best on their travels.

 

“Quite the audience today, heard you scared the hell out of some kid though.” Kravitz looks up from the tip money he had been counting. Hurley, one of the security guards- was leaning on the counter beside Sloane, the gift shopkeeper. Kravitz shrugs.

 

“We are nearing Halloween, best to get the crowd riled up.” He waved the wad of cash, “It pays to be spooky.”

 

Sloane wrinkles her nose. “You can drop the accent, we aren't tourists.” Kravitz blushes out of embarrassment, letting out a nervous chuckle.

 

“Sorry, sometimes I kinda get too involved in the whole bit.” He continues to count the cash, Kravitz had been born and raised in Wales, but his mother had been American, and after his father passed, he found himself leaning more towards the American accent, but didn't mind playing on his father’s Welsh roots now and again- the tourists certainly enjoyed it. Hurley smiles.

 

“No worries man,” she hums. “How much did you even get today?”

 

Kravitz finishes off counting the last of the tips and grins. “Five hundred on the dot, not bad!” He pauses, looking from Hurley to Sloane. “Say, when were you two flying out to the U.S? I remember it’s tomorrow but what time?”

 

“Early in the morning!” Hurley hums. “We shipped out our bikes yesterday-”

 

“And I swear to  _ god _ , if they bend one of my spokes again, I’m going to break them in half, see how those jackasses like that.” Sloane grunts, earning a light shove on the shoulder from Hurley. The taller woman grins, “We leave tomorrow morning, doing clinics for the rest of the week for girl racers on our tour, then finishing it off next friday by racing at Grands.”

 

Kravitz raises his eyebrows, “That’s a lot, and well- I wish you the best.” He places the wad of money in Hurley’s hand with a smile. She looks up at him with wide eyes. “That should get you a decent, uh,  bike part? You were mentioning that one-”   
  


“Fuck yeah!” Sloane says with a grin, “New carbon cranks a-hoy! Thank you, Kravitz!” She grins and playfully shoves at his shoulder. He shrugs with a laugh.

 

“You should get packing, really, it’s no worries, see you girls in two weeks,” he says. They share a brief hug, chattering enthusiastically about some of the plans they had been coming up with for their trip, as well as promising to bring Kravitz  _ something  _ back, despite his assurance that it wasn’t necessary. As they began to head out, Hurley began to speak about something which Kravitz couldn’t follow for the life of him.

 

“Okay but carbon can be unreliable, just saying- I know you’re light but those babies snap like collarbones, maybe those treated-”   
  


“It’s late, and you know I don’t understand your motorcycle speak.” Kravitz sighs. Sloane shoots him a glare as she steps out the door.

 

“Bicycles! BMX! Not Supercross you  _ uncultured-  _ you’re my boss, I refuse to finish that sentence, but anyway-” Hurley muffles her with the flat of one of her palms, nervously smiling back at Kravitz.

 

‘What she is trying to say is we use our own power and speed, pedaling, not motors.”   
  


“Oh, well then, pedal to the metal.” Kravitz gives them a small salute. They wave back before driving off in their shared car, leaving Kravitz totally and utterly alone at the Raven Queen Castle, for two weeks.

 

No big deal. 

 

Kravitz busies himself fixing up minor things in the shop: crooked hanging shirts, snow globes that had been replaced wrong, the little things. Satisfied with his job, he leaves and makes his way back to the residential area, just beyond the fifth quadrant. Though it was as large as a quadrant, the resident area was considered to be something more private, a home within the castle, reserved for the the Kravitz family, and the portion of the castle Kravitz, being the most recent heir, had been most familiar with, due to the fact he had grown up in that area.

The walls were dark, long thick red drapes framed the tall windows- stars peeking through the crimson tresses. It was very beautiful; Kravitz had always enjoyed it. The castle was, though ominous, also very lovely- a safe haven, and really, what’s a safe haven without a poltergeist or two?

 

The lights flick on as he walks by, the motion sensors had been an odd adjustment at first, bright in the daytime and a darker light in the evenings to prevent burning his eyes. It made the trips a little less unnerving. He stops in front of the room, the door slightly ajar- he didn’t recall opening it, and Hurley would have taken down anyone that even entered the start of the Residence. He glances around- yes, he grew up around them and learned it was normal to be faced with an odd occurrence in the house, still, he couldn’t help the sense of being on edge-

 

The light just beyond him flicks on, he couldn’t have- no, he couldn’t have triggered that, could he? He swallows thickly, grabbing at the handle- he yanks his hand back,  _ fuck _ , the thing felt like dry ice! He steps back and the door slams, the noise echoing across the hallways. He cradles his hand, which now felt inhumanly frigid, and stepped back with wide eyes.

 

“Okay,” he says quietly, his voice slanted with an edge. “It’s me, Kravitz, there is no need to be hostile- I would very much like to sleep now, so can you please open my door?” He glances around, somewhat hopeful, incredibly desperate. He had seen his mother speak like this, calm, and whatever would go down might at least be less hostile.

 

He flinches as the light that had turned on in his side flicks out, and the door opens with a loud and echoing creaking noise, sounding almost reminiscent of a wail, as it halts, creating an opening just wide enough for him to slip through. He considers, for a moment, opening it wider, but one wary glance at the doorknob immediately deters the thought, the pain still throbbing in his hand.

 

Two weeks, it was simply two weeks, he reminded himself, he could handle himself alone, he had done it many times before, but why, then, did this time feel so different? As if the air itself were prickling against his skin, needles digging and scraping across him. He felt the sneaking suspicion that someone was staring at him.

 

The crack of the door slamming caused him to jump with a yell, whirling around and staring at the dark oak with wide eyes, a large crack now draws itself through the center of the doorknob, which shuddered with an unseen energy. “This isn’t,” Kravitz croaks, stepping back once more. “This isn’t funny!”

 

He gasps as something hard smacks him in his chest, sending him reeling back into the wall, pain spiking through his back. His breaths are coming out quick and labored, something was present, it was obvious now- something was present and something was furious. He reaches for the lamp beside him, fingers shaking rapidly as he grabs at the switch. The light clicks on for a moment remaining bright, before a loud shriek emits from its bulb, exploding in a shower of sparks and glass.

 

Kravitz jumps away from it, what the  _ fuck _ was happening? This was by no means the typical book flying off a shelf, or the occasional loud bang down the hall. With a swift turn of his heel, he runs at the door, bracing himself to hit it open with a new determination to get the hell out of this place, and charges. He is not been prepared for the brute force that smacks him then, sending him flying across the room and into the vanity, the mirror cracking against his back, and he cries out as he feels the jagged glass dig into him, a warm feeling of blood trickling down his back.

 

Quickly overpowered by one of the worst pains he has ever felt in his life.

 

The mirror changed temperatures fast, mimicking the frigidness that had burned his hand on the doorknob, sending shockwaves across his back, the pieces that were lodged within him sparked up as well- sending a horrid icy chill throughout his entire body, black spots crowded at the edge of his vision, the scream that was leaving him would put shame to that of a dying man, as he fell down to the floor, heart thudding fast in his ears, the glass falling around him.

 

_ Child, you run in the valley of the sins in your blood. _

 

_ For those who refused to pay, you must be tried. _

 

_ Trapped among us you will writhe. _

 

_ Enter here, see truly what happens when you join your family's pride. _

 

Kravitz jolts from where he lays on the floor as a loud 

_ shck _ sound emits right next to his ear. He groans as he turns. A large portion of the mirror is sticking out of the stone floor, his blood splattered across the side of it. He can see himself for a brief moment, blood matted at his temple, cuts of red across his dark skin, his lips an abnormal bluish color. The image dissipates after a moment, and a skull is staring back at him- its teeth slightly sharper, almost appearing to have multiple fangs. Deep glowing red eyes shone down upon him.

 

_ FACE WHAT THE TRUTH WILL BRING YOU, MACALLISTER KRAVITZ! _

 

The skull shrieks, loud and piercing, the glass around him popping and creaking, the door opening and slamming again. He covers his hands over his ears, ignoring the frigid burn that they cause, and screams as loud as he can- only hoping to drown out the noise, he sobs and screams.


	2. Chapter Two: The Tres Haunted Boys

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey ghouls! The boys are here!

On a crowded airplane 39,000 feet above the Atlantic Ocean, the Tres Haunted Boys, renowned ghost capturers, sit in the middle row of the fully-booked coach section. A large muscular man, who looks extremely uncomfortable in the small chair, his face adorned with dramatic yet well-kempt sideburns is dead center, engrossed in a movie- the small and rather shitty airplane provided earphones hardly cancelling out the low rumble of the plane, or the man next to him: his coworker, Taako, loudly and obscenely snoring.

 

Taako has one leg crossed over the other, the fabric of his designated ‘travel dress’, which he brags about the comfort of, providing just the perfect coverage as a blanket in the chill of the airplane. A bright green sleep mask perches on the arch of his nose, standing out boldly against his tan skin, dotted with sprays of freckles on his cheeks. Stray blonde hairs sway under the small blasts of air from the overhead fan, his long braid falling over one of his shoulders. His lips are parted, his bright white teeth standing out, especially the slight gap between the front two. His nose twitches every once in awhile, followed by a squawking noise.

 

On Taako’s other side, head leaning dangerously far out into the aisle way, is a short and stout bearded man, one arm- a prosthetic painted to look like a tree by his daughter- propped up protectively in his lap. His thick-rimmed glasses are on the edge of his nose and his beard twitches as he laughed silently while indulging in his sleep. His light gray hair is pulled back into a sloppy bun, and his free hand is propped up against the armrest and cradling his chin, awkwardly wavering from time to time.

 

“Attention passengers, we will be landing in Cardiff Airport in about an hour-” Magnus jumps and rips his headphones out. The captain continues to ramble on about the weather conditions, loudly echoing in the headphones and some scripted spiel about an airfare rewards system. Taako groans and pushes up his sleep mask, his nose crinkling when he realizes his throat is dry. He clamors for his water bottle with a sigh, nearly choking on it when he laughs as a stewardess rams the side of the cart into Merle’s head as she passes by; he jumps with a shout and rubs at his head, grunting profanities. 

 

Taako stretches, letting out a long and satisfied yawn. “Boy howdy, when they said drowsy on those motion sickness pills they weren’t fuckin around, cha boy got knocked out.” He grins lazily at Merle, who is still rubbing at the back of his head, glaring in the general direction that the stewardess had gone off towards. “Then again she probably could have handled that if those hadn’t conked me out.”

 

“Yeah, probably,” Merle says, pushing his glasses back up his nose. “I think your sister booked coach just to punish us.”

 

Magnus eyes his headphones wearily as if they were to attack him. “Well, you did try to give her shoes made out of seaweed for her wedding gift.”

“Oh yeah, Lulu was not happy about that one, asshole,” Taako affirms, tucking strands of hair behind his ears. “And it was Avi who booked us, wise guy, he builds our shit but he also plans these things.”

 

“I crafted my gift with  _ love-  _ what’s the saying?” He scuffs his feet. “It’s the thought that counts!”

 

Magnus laughs at that. “Okay see, now, the fact that you had to think about what that just proved Taako’s point,” Merle says something under his breath at that. The three begin organizing their respective things. They don’t have very much on their person, and their luggage, too, is limited: their equipment- a TSA agent’s wet dream- would never have cleared security, and probably would have been broken at that, and so had been shipped the previous week to the location.

 

They learned the hard way that speaking of such things in public earned them three things on a regular basis: Fans, glares/whispers, and shouts of how they were liars and/or cheats that turn a profit on fake bullshit. It is manageable sometimes when they can slip off a casual conversation in public; however, seeing as they are in an air compressed tube launching through the sky, they decide to remain quiet. 

 

~<\--->~

 

“Okay, okay, so we got poltergeist activity, that’s a given but I don’t really know how to even  _ start _ on the whole mirror skull situation,” Taako says. Magnus nods, his large fingers drumming on the steering wheel as they drive past the coast, heading inland- closer and closer to their destination of Raven Queen Castle. Taako had begun to ramble as soon as they got in the rental car, looking at the laminated notes on the case Lucretia had handed them during the briefing, and also some of the brightly colored sticky notes that Angus, Magnus’s recently adopted son, had left that had theories on what the symbolism could mean and also the history of the castle.

 

“Didn’t it say something about twins killing people in that house? Like, torturing them and stuff? The hell is that about?” Merle says, his voice has an edge to it, clearly unnerved by the whole situation. Who wouldn’t be? It’s so horrifyingly brutal.

 

“That’s only the start of the rabbit hole mon frair: weird-ass religious rituals, murders, suicide, all that weird shit. The place is defo a paranormal hotspot,” Taako affirms, picking at a bright blue sticky note. “Ango says that according to Stone Tape Theory, that energy is way fuckin’ stuck, this isn’t gonna be easy.”

 

The others only let out a noise of agreement, staring at the thick fog that ran ominously along the countryside. It sets an odd feeling within their stomachs- a feeling of being trapped, unable to see past the dense mist and abnormally green grass cuts across the dull scene like a knife. It feels bizarre, it looks  _ wrong _ .

 

The spiked black fence that came into view certainly added no reassurance to the nasty feeling that churned within the trio, a large gateway made of thick black stone, masoned neatly into an archway, opened wide in an inviting gesture, bright white letters decorating the top of the archway.

 

_ Astral Plane Acres, home of Raven Queen Castle. _

 

There was another sign, pinned neatly against the black stone that reads:

 

_ You are now entering: The Green Mile. Be cautious of narrow roads and steep drops. _

  
  


“The Green Mile? That sounds... pleasant?” Magnus says nervously as the continue onward, the road dipped and wound, just as promised- it slowly became more narrow as they began to make their way up a steep hill. 

 

“Green Mile is a metaphor, Maggie,” Taako says, his eyes peering up at the shadowy mass of the castle that began to creep into their line of vision. “It’s what you say when someone’s on the last stretch of life, it’s kinda morbid- defo not pleasant.”

 

“Oh.” 

 

“Aren’t we staying here? In the castle? Who the hell thought that was gonna be a good idea? Seriously, this place is creepy.” Merle says, pressing himself back into the seat more. “I don’t know if I would want to stay the afternoon here, let alone the  _ night _ !”

 

Taako shrugs, turning back to Merle. “We’re ghost hunters Merle? We saved the world from some nerd thought that hole-punching into another dimension was somehow a good idea. This is child’s play.”

 

“I mean, the nearest town is nearly two hours from here. If you want to go off into the night after a long day of work- exhausted, alone- be my guest, but until then this is our best bet.” Magnus pauses, the detail of the stone building becoming slightly more clear. “Plus this dude, Macallister Kravitz? For starters,  _ helluva nice name,  _ but anywho. Him, client, he seems nice! Latest reviews on this place have said nice things about him.”

 

“Yeah I don’t really get why people would consider this a vacation spot, but people are weird, who fuckin’ knows.” Taako digs his phone out of his pocket and grins, unlocking it and quickly opening his photos. “Plus have you seen the guy? Pr-etty easy on the eyes, if you ask me,” he hums, showing off the image: a man with dark brown skin and dreadlocks falling over his shoulders stood proudly in front of the doors of the Castle in a three-piece suit and a cheesy smile. He was admittably incredibly attractive.

 

Magnus snickers, “You already have pictures of this guy save on your  _ phone? _ ” Taako huffs and points his nose upwards, looking mildly embarrassed.

 

“I can’t help that he’s handsome as fuck, plus cha boy has been on the market for way too damn long-” he pauses and sits up straight, grinning from ear to ear. “How hot under the collar do you think HR would get if I banged a client?”

 

Merle chokes on the packet of plane pretzels he had been eating, coughing and slamming the palm of his hand on his chest, sputtering bits of pretzel onto a napkin. Magnus tries his best to keep the car steady as he laughs. “N- _ no _ , that guy's a real stick in the mud- Brad, was it?”

 

“Oh I’m shivering!” Taako snickers. “What’s he going to do, tell me he’s not mad, just disappointed? The guy wrote himself up once for something not even remotely saucy, what will he do?” The boys all laugh at that.

 

“Yeah, yeah, he won’t do anything, go for that Mister Kravitz fella, the poor guy.” Merle flashes a toothy grin. “We’ll call it Taakitz, and I’m a qualified priest if you need one.”   
  


“O-okay,” Taako manages between laughs. “I said I was interested, I didn’t say marriage- pump the fuckin’ breaks, my man.” They fall back into silence as they approach the Castle. It is unbelievably massive. “Holy fuck…” Taako heaves. The size of the building was truly a spectacle, large archways and flying buttresses carved ornately into the sides. Windows of stained glass are slick with the mist, faintly glittering in the hazy light. They can’t even witness the full expanse of the building, the fog consuming a part of it. Really, if they wanted to go for a classic horror film, they have it in the bag.

 

“We never agreed on how long we’re gonna be here. Looks like a while, this place is fucking massive,” Magnus says. It was true- during the briefing, Lucretia had been specific in not knowing the extent of what their stay would be. Now, as they parked in the gravel lot, they could understand why.

 

“Seems like it,” Merle says as they exit the car, letting out a wolf whistle as he cranes his neck in hopes of seeing more, to no avail. Taako hooks his umbrella over his wrist, seeing no use for it as there was no sun, though he still preferred to keep it close by. Bags in hand, they approach the Castle of the Raven Queen. Their client waits by the door, waits at the door, in a suit similar to the one that had been in the photo- this time, however, he is wearing gloves.   
  


“Welcome, Taako, Magnus, and Merle.” He greets them with a shy smile, a tired look in his eyes. “I am Macallister Kravitz but Kravitz would be proffered. I deeply appreciate you all coming, I would like to get right to the business and get that out of the way, then relax afterward. Would that be okay?”  He pauses again. “I have wine?”

 

“Say no more, handsome,” Taako hums, “anything to drink off the memory of that kid kicking me in the back on the way here. Lead the way.” Kravitz raises his eyebrows at the nickname and blinks, clearly taken back, before smiling.

 

“Okay,” he says, laughing nervously. “Follow me.”

**Author's Note:**

> One more time, I will post about it on my twitter (@oriana_gray) or in a more organized fashion on tumblr where I will tag it as "Tres Haunted Boys", tag anything with that and I will defo see it!
> 
> Anyhow, don't be afraid to stop by and say Hiya! to me on  
> Twitter: @oriana_gray  
> Tumblr: orianagray.tumblr.com  
> Instagram: @oriana_gray
> 
> Have a nice day! Stay spooky my friends.


End file.
